The invention relates to manual tools for carpentry work. More specifically, the invention relates to pry bar tools for use in the alignment of cabinetry and mill work during installation of the same.
During the installation of prefabricated cabinets in kitchens, bathrooms, and the like, it is necessary for the carpenter installing the cabinets to align those cabinets so as to be level with respect to the floor on which the cabinets reside. This is important to prevent objects placed on top of the cabinet surface (e.g., countertop, etc.) to remain stationary, rather than roll off an edge thereof. The top of the cabinets themselves are substantially parallel to the bottom of the pre-manufactured cabinet unit. Nevertheless, the floor on which the cabinet is installed may not itself be level with respect to ground. Therefore, carpenters and contractors typically insert a wooden shim underneath the cabinet so as to level the cabinet prior to permanent fixation of the cabinet with the shim to the floor and/or adjacent wall. Normally, a cabinet installer will use a pry bar to elevate the cabinet to a level height prior to inserting the shim underneath the cabinet. Once the wooden shim has been initially inserted under the cabinet, the shim is typically tapped into place by the installer. The wooden shim typically deforms during this operation and the pry bar can then be removed and the cabinet fixed in place. A conventional pry bar of the type utilized in the prior art is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings. The pry bar has an elongated main body as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and, in side elevation, has the appearance of an elongated xe2x80x9cLxe2x80x9d. The elongated portion of the main body typically has a sharpened end which tapers outwardly with respect to the main body. This end can be used as a scraper in addition to facilitating insertion of the pry bar under the cabinet. The other end of the pry bar typically has an upwardly directed leg which is also sharpened for use as a paint scraper or the like. The pry bar is typically provided with a hole adjacent to the projecting leg for the removal of nails and the like.
The shimming action described above is also used when installing crown mouldings, base boards, and other trim materials where the surface plane of the moulding needs to be alined with a reference surface (e.g., floor, wall or ceiling). The use of the prior art pry bars allow the installer to aline the moulding prior to permanently affixing the moulding to the adjacent substrate.
Prior art pry bars as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are also used to adjust doors with respect to their openings, whereby the doors are affixed to the openings through their hardware (e.g., hinges, closers, etc.). By either using the long end of the prior art pry bar with the sharpened end (often termed a xe2x80x9cgraduated shimxe2x80x9d) or by using the short 90 degree end, the door can be elevated to the proper height. Obviously, when using the short 90 degree end to lift the door, significant lever action is obtained due to the moment arm length of the elongated portion of the pry bar. The shimming action of the prior art pry bars can also be used in remodeling, where a strong, non-deforming shim is required to adjust framing heights, to split framing apart, to remove existing framing, etc. As stated above, pry bars can also be used as scrapers, removing excess or old paint, caulking, nails, etc.
Nevertheless, certain difficulties are associated with the use of the prior art pry bar shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. It is often difficult to remove the pry bar from underneath the cabinet once the cabinet has been elevated to an appropriate position and a permanent shim installed. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the prior art pry bar has a substantially constant thickness, except for the sharpened portion at the ends thereof. Thus, the pry bar does not provide any substantially range of vertical adjustment of the cabinet or mill work unless an additional shimming object is used underneath the pry bar itself. Thus, a need exists for an improved pry bar which provides a greater range of shimming action and which is easily removable from a cabinet or moulding (a xe2x80x9cwork piecexe2x80x9d) after permanent installation of a wooden shim or the like.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved finishing bar for use with respect to cabinetry, mill work and the like which provides a large range of shimming action.
It is a further object of the present invention to achieve the above object with a finishing bar which is easily removed from a work piece once the work piece has been permanently installed.
The invention achieves these objects and other objects and other objects and advantages of the invention which become apparent from the description which follows by providing a finishing bar having an elongated main body, having a substantially tapered first end, and at a distal second end a second wedge-shaped portion projecting substantially normal to the main body. The main body further defines a substantially arch-shaped channel beginning at the first end of the main body and gradually increasing in height toward the second so as to define an aperture at the second end in the wedge-shaped portion. The aperture is adapted for receiving a user""s finger for removal of the finishing bar from the work piece or application.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the first end and the wedge-shaped portion are sharpened to facilitate using the finishing bar as a scraper. In addition, the main body further defines an aperture adjacent to the first end for use in removing nails. The main body is preferably manufactured from forged steel, and can be provided with a substantially narrowed waist portion between the first and second ends of the main body.